COLOMBO, March 9 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan Finance Minister Basil Rajapaksa on Wednesday issued a gazette notification restricting the import of 367 non-essential items with no valid import license.
The gazette comes into effect from midnight on Wednesday, the Department of Imports and Exports Control said.
The restricted items include fish fillets and other fish meat, milk and cream, buttermilk, curdled milk and cream, yogurt, butter, cheese and curd, televisions and some fruits.
Any importers, who wants to import items mentioned in the gazette, can apply for a license from the Controller General of Imports and Exports Control.
In recent weeks, a number of politicians have been critical of the import of non-essential items. Former Minister of Energy Udaya Gammanpila alleged that Sri Lanka spends around 6 billion U.S. dollars for the import of non-essential items a year. ■
